The Love in Our Stars
by bluesky1983
Summary: Sam's birthday is coming up and none of her family and friends seem to have time to spend it with her. But she had reckoned without her CO.
1. The Plan

Disclaimer: None of the characters are mine. This story is written for entertainment use only and is not intended as an infringement against the copy protected material that belongs to Showtime, MGM/UA and GekkoFilms.

This story is 100% Sam/Jack fluff and romance with a little bit of humor (well, it's O'Neill we're talking about), so if you don't ship those two, you're wrong here.  
It is set at the beginning of season 6 but with Daniel still alive.

It has 7 chapters that are already finished and I will update once a week. I promise!

I hope, you have fun reading!  
Please read and review!  
I'd love to hear/read your thoughts on this and will reply to every  
message or review as soon as I can.

Last but not least a huge thank you to my kind and awesome beta readers, Mauryn and PeaceTapping. This story wouldn't be here without you!

**The Love in Our Stars**

**Chapter 1 – The Plan**

"_I gotta make this one special"_ Jack O'Neill thought, wondering what he could get his 2IC for her upcoming birthday in two days. It was just after Christmas and he hadn't seen Sam since the 23rd..

Jack already missed her like crazy.

He wanted to surprise her and reveal a little bit more of his feelings for her, not enough to scare her away but enough to let her know that he still cared about her more than he was supposed to. He wasn't sure that she still knew. She had seemed to be a little uncomfortable around him in the past weeks and he wondered what had happened. Did he say something wrong or inappropriate? Did she have personal issues? Could her feelings for him have subsided? Or even worse, could the reason be another man?

Even the thought of this made him flinch. He couldn't lose her to somebody else.

Jack was sure that he had never had such intense feelings for a woman but for his ex-wife Sara. He loved Sam Carter, his blonde and beautiful, incredibly smart and big-hearted 2IC with all of his heart.

Who wouldn't fall in love with her? But he was in the lucky position that she returned his feelings. -

At least she used to. He still couldn't believe that she had confessed it during the Za'tarc test. Even she had had to hold back then and give the abbreviated version because they had had an audience, but her words kept replaying in his mind over and over again.

_Flashback to the Za'tarc re-testing:_

_Anise: Major Carter, what did you feel when you were trapped behind the force field?  
Sam: I was sure that I was going to die and I felt myself retreating.  
Anise: And what about Col. O'Neill on the other - the safe side - of the shield?  
Sam: I wanted him to leave me behind. I couldn't stand the thought of him dying with me.  
Anise: Why exactly? Isn't it a rule of your military that no one gets left behind?  
Sam: Yes, it is but my death seemed to be unavoidable, so I wanted him to forget the rules once and just leave._

_There had been unshed tears glistening in Sam's eyes and Jack had had to hold back the urge to pull her into a hug for comfort._

_Anise: Were you aware of the fact that Colonel O'Neill might have had other reasons beside that military rule?  
Sam: I became aware of it when I looked into his eyes.  
Anise: What did you see there?  
Sam swallowed hardly: Pure emotion, deep feelings, obviously for me.  
_

_She wouldn't use the L-word because it was just not the right time for it but Sam had been pretty sure that what she had seen was pure, unshielded love. She couldn't remember a guy had ever looked at her like this before and her heart skipped a beat just by the thought of it._

_Anise: And what did you feel at this Moment? _

_Anise's voice yanked her out of her daydreams._

_Sam: I...I felt the same way for him as he did for me and I still do._

Those words rang in Jack's ears. She loved him too. He really couldn't have been any happier.

But the Za'tarc test had been 2 years ago, they had agreed to leave it in the room and Jack wasn't sure if Sam's feelings were still there. Could such a beautiful and smart woman really love a grumpy, much older soldier like him? He had issues and flaws...lots of them.

Sometimes he just thought that he would never be good enough for her. She could do so much better and yet she was still around. Fighting with or for him, always getting him back when he was lost...even when everybody else had given up.

Sam was too good to be true. Once Jack had realized this, he knew that he had to do something about it before it was too late.

So, what was the perfect birthday gift for the most perfect woman?  
He really had no idea until his eyes caught the local paper on the desk before him and an idea started to form in his head. That was it.

Jack knew that Sam didn't really care about material things. So he wouldn't just buy something.  
He would make her day special. He would even try to make it unforgettable.

Since Jacob Carter wouldn't be around due to his Tok'ra duties, her brother Marc couldn't visit because his daughter was in the hospital with a broken leg, Janet was on vacation with Cassie, Teal'c would be off-world to help Bra'tac with recruiting people for a new Jaffa legion and Daniel would be on PX-9325 with SG-11 to translate some insignia, Sam had tried hard to fight her disappointment that she seemingly would have to spend her birthday without her friends and family. She hadn't even considered that Jack would be free and he hadn't offered.

He began to plan the day in his head: At first he would take her to the zoo. Jack knew that Sam loved animals and he was sure that it would be fun to go there with her. Maybe he could even impress her with his knowledge about some of the animals. He had gone with Charlie several times a year, but hadn't been there since his death. If he would feel like it, maybe he would share some of his stories from their visits to the zoo with Sam. He had rarely talked to her about him because it was still hard and brought him close to tears every time but if there was one person in the whole universe he would open up to, it would be her.

Charlie would have loved her. He had been a little science geek and had been interested in everything that had to do with experiments, stars and the sky. The two of them would have definitely gotten along well. He knew that Sam loved kids as much as he did. She was great with Cassie and it always made his heart jump when he saw her around children. He pictured Charlie and Sam working on one of her doohickeys together.

Jack suddenly realized that he had a huge lump in his throat. The thoughts of his late son clouded his mind. He blinked back the tears and tried to focus on his task.

After the zoo he would take Sam to her favorite Chinese restaurant. They had never been there together but he knew that Sam had gone with Janet a couple of times plus he had overheard them talking about the excellent food. So Mr. Wong it was.

After dinner it would already be dark outside and since the Christmas-fair would still be around, Jack thought it would be nice to take Sam there. In his thoughts he walked with her through the illuminated place, fireworks above them, hand in hand, maybe some ice-skating if Sam would like to.

He smiled at the thought, and then shook his head. "Reality check, Jack", he said to himself. He didn't even know whether she would even join him. She had refused to go fishing with him on more than one occasion and suddenly Jack wasn't so sure about the whole 'special-day' idea.

What if she didn't want to spend the day with him? Or to be more specific, spend it ALONE with him?

Again, the memory of her strange behaviour in the last two weeks started to surface. She hadn't smiled at him with that incredibly cute smile, she had stopped to laugh or smile at his jokes, she had even hardly looked at him anymore. He knew he shouldn't be so painfully aware of these things since she was still his 2IC, but it hurt him more than he would admit.

Jack suddenly realized that he couldn't take it anymore. He wanted to make her birthday special, but he needed to clear the air between them first. He needed to find out what was wrong and if there was another guy.

His stomach turned at the thought. He picked up the phone and dialed Sam's number. Only then did he realize that it was already 2am but it was too late, Sam picked up after the second ring.

"Hello?" she sounded very sleepy and Jack mentally kicked himself for waking her in the middle of the night.

Only when she said hello a second time, he realized that he should say something but his mind was completely blank. He cleared his throat.

"Carter? 'That you?" he managed to say. Then it dawned him that he was just making a complete fool of himself. Of course it was her, he had called her himself.

"Sir, is everything ok?" Sam asked, now wide awake and slightly alarmed. The Colonel never called her in the middle of the night.

"I'm um...fine...I guess" he stammered and slammed his flat hand against his head because he felt like a teenage boy again asking his crush out on a date.

"You guess?" Sam began to get really worried.

"Sir, why don't you give me 20 minutes to shower and get dressed and then I'll come over to see what's wrong?!" she suggested. Then adding insecurely: "Unless you already have company?"

That caught him completely off guard. He managed to deny the company and agree for her to come over and then hung up. How could he face her in a few minutes without wanting the ground to swallow him whole? He really had to get himself together or he would scare her away.

Jack went into the kitchen and started to make coffee, because he was sure Sam would want one, once she arrived. Suddenly he was looking forward to seeing her so soon. He really loved to see her in her civvies because they made her look more feminine than the wide BDUs she usually wore off-world.

He took a couple of deep breaths and let his mind wander.

Jack wasn't sure how long he'd been standing there, but the ring of the doorbell yanked him out of his dreams. He opened the door and took a quick look at his stunning 2IC. She wore tight, dark-blue jeans and a long black winter coat. She smiled slightly but in her eyes he could see worry.

"Come on in" he said, stepping aside to let her enter the house. He fought the urge to help her out of her coat. He knew her too well and was pretty sure she would hate it.

"Coffee?" he asked as she took the coat off herself and was surprised when she shook her head.

"Do you have hot chocolate?" Sam wanted to know, her blue eyes beaming at him.

"Oh, yeah, sure" Jack answered and went into the kitchen to heat up some milk.

"Make yourself comfortable, will ya?" he shouted for her to hear in the living room.

When he came back, Jack saw Sam standing at his picture-wall, a picture of him and Charlie in her hand. She hadn't heard him entering the room because she jumped when he cleared his throat beside her.

She almost dropped the picture and mumbled: "Sorry, Sir...I didn't...I wasn't...".

"It's okay, Carter. Mi casa es su casa, right?" Jack joked and winked at her.

Sam seemed to relax a little at this reaction and put the picture back. He handed her the hot chocolate and she took a small sip.

"So...what was that phone call all about?" she asked, the worry creeping back into her eyes.

"I uh...I wondered what is wrong with you lately...you seem so un-Carter-like. Towards me at least."

Jack hoped that she would get what he was talking about. He wasn't a man of many words and didn't know how to describe it any better.

Sam swallowed. She hadn't been aware that her change in behaviour had been that obvious. But after what she had learned a couple of weeks ago, she wasn't in the mood to keep the flirty banter up.

"I...I saw you and your...girlfriend at the park a couple of weeks ago, Sir" she managed to say and was glad when it was out, so she didn't have to pretend she wouldn't know anymore.

"My what?" Jack couldn't believe what he'd heard. What was she talking about?

"Tall, slim, long brown hair. You know what your girlfriend looks like, don't you, Sir?" Sam was starting to become slightly annoyed by his behaviour.

When Jack realized whom she was talking about, he couldn't help but smile. Plus, the jealousy in Carter's voice gave him all the answers he needed.

"You mean my cousin Anna? We ran into each other at the park. We hadn't seen each other in years and she was happy to see me."

"Your cousin?" Sam almost choked on her hot chocolate. She tried to hide her flushed face by tucking her chin into her chest and letting her hair fall across her face. Jack still smiled at her but then grew serious again.

"I wouldn't want any other" he whispered unsure if Sam had heard him. Regarding her lack of reaction she didn't seem to. She put her cup on the table and said: "I better go, Sir. Unless there's something else you wanna talk about. It's late and I'm really tired."

"No, nothing else. Well just one more question really..." Jack tried to bring up the courage to ask her, "would you mind spending your birthday with me?"

Sam looked shocked at first, then her face lit up and she gave him one of her beautiful and rare Carter smiles.

"Actually, I would love to! Goodnight, Sir!" With that she turned around and left, leaving behind a very happy Jack standing in his living room with a birthday to plan.


	2. The Beginning

Originally, I intended to let you wait a whole week for the next chapter but as it is always better to have a new chapter to read on the weekend, I decided to change my pattern and to update every Sunday afternoon from now on (Central European Time).

So, here comes the second chapter! Have fun reading!

Reviews are once again very much appreciated!

Thank you very much for your reviews and follows of the first chapter, every single one of them makes me happy!

And thanks again to Mauryn for beta reading! :)

* * *

**Chapter 2 – The Beginning**

When Sam would still be up for it after the zoo, dinner and Christmas-fair, he would take her to his house to watch the stars from his rooftop, Jack decided.

The weather forecast had predicted that there would be no snow and it would be quite cold and freezing, which meant the sky would be crystal clear. The perfect weather for watching the stars..._with the perfect woman_, he added in his head, getting all dreamy again.

Jack didn't know how Sam did this. He was a trained special ops soldier, he was supposed to be able to control his feelings and thoughts but Sam Carter had managed to creep behind his hard shell and hit the soft core, he always tried to hide so desperately. She had so much control of his head and his heart that he was afraid that he wouldn't be able to make the right decisions in the field anymore.

That was why he had decided to talk to General Hammond about it the week before Christmas.

His intention had been to get transferred to another SG team and let Carter take the lead on SG-1.

Sure, she was just a Major..._yet_, he had added in his head, but not just any Major on the US Airforce. In Jack's opinion Sam Carter was the most capable officer he had ever worked with and he was absolutely sure that she would make it very far. Lieutenant Colonel at least, maybe even General. She sure had the skills and the brains for it.

Thinking about that made Jack unbelievably proud of his 2IC. Sam was living proof that a woman was able to come far in a men dominated field without sleeping her way to the top. Not that he would mind...

_Oh for crying out loud, stop thinking about her this way, _he mentally slapped himself.

* * *

Hammond had declined his request, turning into George, the fatherly figure for just a little moment, revealing that he had always hoped for Sam and Jack to act on their feelings, he had been well aware of for a while. Maybe the Christmas spirit lying in the air, had helped the older man's attitude, too. It was called the season of love for a reason.

Then Hammond had added, returning to be the superior officer, that when they would continue being professional in the field, he would be ok with them seeing each other outside the SGC.

Jack had been shocked. Had he known that it would be that easy, he would have made this call much earlier. There had to be a hitch somewhere, he was sure about that.

"What about the President and the NID?" Jack had asked and had been rewarded with a rare Hammond-smile.

"All taken care of, Son. Don't worry. Half of the SGC believes that you and Major Carter are a couple anyway. They all are rooting for you, there might even have been bets, I don't know nothing about officially. Just keep your relationship out of your duty and out of this mountain and it will be alright."

"I really hope that I'll be able to do so" Jack had answered honestly.

Hammond had only replied: "I trust both of you with this. You have always been professional about it in the past. I'm sure you will continue to do so. And now stop thinking too much, Colonel. That's your better half's task. Dismissed" he had added with a wink.

* * *

Jack didn't have to prepare much for Sam's special day. He had made the reservations for the Chinese restaurant and had called Sam to tell her that he would pick her up at her place at 9am. She had suggested that they could have breakfast there first before heading into town.

Jack hadn't let her on to what he was up to but he had told her to dress casually and warm for their first stop.

He had had a very restless night because he couldn't deny that he was nervous. It felt like a date, their first one and even if he knew Sam quite well by now, this was huge.

There was so much that could go wrong and Jack was really worried if Sam would like the activities at all. He wasn't good at this, he never had been.

But then he remembered George's advice and tried to stop overthinking things. This was clearly Sam's expertise and he always made fun of her about it.

Jack dressed in beige cargo pants and a dark blue sweater. He packed his olive anorak, his black beanie and gloves together with a change of clothes and some food in a bag, made a stop at a florist's to buy some flowers and then headed to Sam's house.

She must have heard him pull up her driveway because she already greeted him at the door.

Jack hadn't planned how to do this, so for an awkward moment the two of them just stood there, staring at each other. Both of them lost in their thoughts of what to expect of the upcoming day.

Jack realized that he should stop staring at Sam and when she shivered slightly, he pulled her into a hug with one arm and whispered: "Happy Birthday, Carter!", while he held the flowers in such a tight grip in the other hand behind his back that he was afraid they would be destroyed by the time he gave them to her.

Sam didn't pull away from his hug and the soothing mix of her warmth, her heartbeat and her scent, calmed him down significantly. Only when she shivered again, Jack realized that she had to be really cold, so he broke the contact reluctantly.

Sam looked into his eyes, blue ones drowning in brown ones and there it was again: This unshielded look of love, he only had seen once before. But this time there was no force field between them and the thought of their day ahead, made Jack's heart beat faster.

"Come on in, Sir!" Sam invited him and then added softly "and thanks for being here today."

With that she gave him another one of her full blown Carter smiles and his heart began beating even faster.

He then remembered the flowers which he still held behind his back. He smiled back at Sam and handed them to her, a slight blush on his face, again feeling like a teenager.

"I brought you somethin'. Nothing to experiment on, though" he joked, trying to distract himself from staring at her mouth the whole time.

It didn't work because Sam smiled again, leaned forward, gave him a light peck on the cheek and said: "Thank you, Sir, that's really..." she stopped, obviously searching for the right choice of words "sweet."

Jack couldn't help but smile from ear to ear at her use of one of his favorite words. Describing his behaviour it was even more flattering.

As they entered her house together, all he could think about was, that in the first five minutes of this day, they had already hugged, she had kissed his cheek, which still tingled where her mouth had touched his skin, and she had called him sweet.

This day had started really sweet, indeed.


	3. The Breakfast

First of all, I would like to thank you for your kind reviews! Every single one of it makes me really happy.

This third chapter is not as fluffy as the previous ones, but it had to be done, since in my opinion, Sam is a person who would have such doubts in a situation like this.

Please read and review!

* * *

**Chapter 3 – The Breakfast**

Sam had made pancakes, scrambled eggs and bacon for breakfast and Jack couldn't help but feeling like home. He definitely could get used to this. He then stopped himself again. He was jumping to conclusions without even having talked to her about their possibilities first. After all, Sam was completely unaware of his conversation with Hammond and he didn't want to scare her away by talking about it just yet.

"That's pretty good" Jack said, chewing "didn't know ya could cook."

"Well, actually I can't, Sir. That's about it" Sam answered, looking slightly embarrased.

Jack frowned and then smiled at her. "Well, I could do the cooking part..." he said, stopping mid-sentence, realizing what he had been about to say.

"Uh, nevermind. May I use your bathroom?"

When he got back into the kitchen the awkwardness of the previous moment was still in the air. They both didn't know what to say, so they finished breakfast silently and even cleaned up the kitchen without a single word.

That was something they both were good at: Silent communication. It worked well in the field, even if Daniel got annoyed by it because he wasn't able to follow their silent chit chat. So maybe it would work in private life too.

Jack knew he had to talk to Sam at some point, but for the moment he enjoyed the comfortable silence. The awkwardness was gone and they acted around each other like a long married couple.

When they were finished, it was Sam who broke the silence.

"So?" she asked curiously.

"So, get your winter clothes and we will head out for our first stop for today" Jack replied trying not to sound too much like a commanding officer.

"Still not telling me what you're up to, aren't you, Sir?" Sam tried, attempting to sound slightly annoyed, but couldn't help a little smile. She was honestly flattered, that with all her family and friends gone for the day, Jack was putting on so much effort. She actually thought, that she had never seen him acting so sweet, and seeing that he did it only for her, made her heart jump.

But maybe she was reading something into it? Maybe he did all this because he had nothing else to do and felt sorry for her...or maybe he had drawn the shortest straw and had been forced to do this?

Could he really be still in love with her, after she had shown him none of her feelings since they had left all of it in that room? Jack O'Neill was a very attractive man and Sam was sure that he wouldn't wait for her forever. Why would he, when he could have almost every woman he wanted?

Those thoughts clouded her mind and her face must have betrayed her, because Jack's voice sounded worried when he tried to reach her: "Carter, is everything alright?"

"Why are you doing this? Spending the day with me, I mean? Is it because you feel that you have to?" Sam couldn't help it, she really needed to know because she wouldn't be able to enjoy the day otherwise.

When she looked at Jack, she saw that her words had really hurt him. He led his guard down for just a moment and beside the hurt, she saw this pure love for her she had seen, when they had been seperated by the force field almost two years ago.

"Well, Carter, if you like it or not, I was actually looking forward to this day with you. I planned it in every detail because I wanted to, certainly not because I needed to. I still care about you a lot, ya know. But if you're thinking of me this way, your feelings seem to be very different to mine."

His word came out a lot harsher than he had intended, his hurt and anger echoing within.

It wasn't that he was truly convinced of his accusations, but he wanted her to talk about her feelings. He needed to hear it, despite what he had seen in her eyes at their greeting this morning.

"Jack..." her use of his first name caught him off guard "I'm so sorry. I ruined the day, didn't I?" Sam asked with a shaky voice, avoiding to answer him directly.

When he saw that her eyes started glistening with unshed tears, he replied in a much softer voice: "No, you didn't! I just wondered where those thoughts came from. I love spending time with you, Car...Sam, and since we almost never get to spend time alone with each other, this day is even more special to me. I really do care about you a lot" Jack tried again to get a reaction from Sam.

Sam shivered when he let his hand brush down her left arm in a very tender gesture. She wasn't sure if she deserved to be loved by such a man. She had just insulted him and he was still there, even touching her.

She looked into his eyes, again unshielded with deep emotion and replied softly: "I do care about you a lot, too. I never stopped. But I'm also scared, you know,...we are...we can't...", she stammered, a single tear running down her cheek.

"Do you trust me, Sam?" Jack interupted her, brushing the tear away with his thumb, cupping her cheek shortly, then letting his hand drop again.

"Of course" she answered without hesitation.

"Then please, forget the regs for just one day and act on what your heart tells you to do" he said tenderly, then added, "I'll explain everything tonight."

Sam nodded and was surprised when Jack leaned down and brushed his lips over hers for just a second.

That was all she needed to convince her, that she was about to have the greatest birthday of her life.

Jack took her hand and led her to his car. He now was sure that this was it. It was their shot to change their lifes forever.

And he would be damned to let it slip away.


	4. The Zoo

Here comes the 4th chapter. I hope you still like the story; please let me know if and why you do or don't.

I'm already working on the next Sam/Jack story, but I'll need a beta-reader. If anyone is interested, please contact me!

Thanks again to the wonderful Mauryn for beta-reading it! xo

* * *

**Chapter 4 - The Zoo**

Sam caught herself staring at her CO during their ride a couple of times. She felt like a teenager on her first date and couldn't help but notice once more how incredibly handsome Jack was.

When they stopped at a traffic light, Jack caught her staring at him and asked in a slightly amused voice: "Trying to test your laser vision on my skull, Carter?"

He winked at her. Oh, he really enjoyed teasing her like that. Sam ducked her head in embarressment but said nothing.

For the rest of the ride, she tried to focus on the world outside her window.

When Sam realized where they were going, she couldn't help but smile. She hadn't been to the zoo for a while and with Jack at her side, it was definitely going to be fun.

"So, Carter, the zoo it is. One rule though: We can go everywhere and watch everything, but we'll leave out the snake-house", he told her, the broad smile across his face betraying his serious tone.

Sam couldn't help but giggle at his reference. "No snakes today, Sir."

Satisfied, Jack took her hand into his again and led her to the entrance.  
Sam couldn't help but notice, how natural and good it felt to walk with him like that.

He paid and they agreed to head for the monkeys first. Some of them had cubs and Sam really seemed to enjoy them.

Suddenly, a little blonde boy stood beside them and tucked at Jack's winter anorak : "Daddy, look at them. They play catch!", he said, all excited.

Jack jumped at the obvious mistake and all of the sudden his face grew sad.

"Jimmy, come here. How many times should I tell you to stay by my side", a voice from behind shouted. Jimmy looked at Jack and let go of his jacket as if he'd burned his hand. Then he hurried after his real Dad.

Sam's heart broke seeing the obvious distress on Jack's face. She could only imagine what losing a child felt like. In a tender gesture she laid a hand on his shoulder and started rubbing tiny circles of comfort with her thumb.

"I'm so sorry", Sam whispered, her head only inches away from his.

Turning to look at her, Jack was surprised to see how close she stood and it took all of his military training to keep himself from kissing her.

"It's okay. Some situations just remind me of him...you know? He really loved watching the monkeys too. It' s just unreal that he is gone forever."

Sam hesitated a moment and then pulled Jack into a hug.  
"When my Mom died, Dad told us, that nobody is really gone forever as long as you keep them in your head and heart", she said, her voice nothing more than a whisper, "and that helped me cope a little."

Jack hugged her tighter and kissed the top of her head. "Thank you", his voice was just as soft as hers.

In this moment Sam forgot the world around her. Nothing else mattered than being in the strong arms of the man she loved.

She was dissapointed when he withdrew from the hug and shivered slightly in spite of her winter clothes.

For a moment she imagined Jack leaning in to kiss her but he didn't.  
Sam mentally kicked herself for not having acted on it, when the moment was gone and Jack turned around to watch the monkeys again. When he spotted one with a little golden-brown mark on its head, he claimed: "Look, it's a real space-monkey!"

In spite the emotional moment before and her anger at herself, Sam couldn't help but burst into laughter. She loved his humor and even when nobody was laughing at Jack's jokes, she usually found them really funny. Jack on the other hand, could hear Sam laugh all day long. The sound of it gave him goose bumps.

"I'll take a picture for Daniel" he added with a wink and pulled the camera out of his pocket.

Then he turned around and looked at Sam. "I really wanna remember this day, do you mind if we take a selfie at every stop?"

Sam smiled and agreed. "I'd love that." This way, they would both have a reminder of their first date if this day turned out to be more than just two friends spending a birthday together.

They both stood close to each other and smiled into the camera. Jack was tempted to grimace, but there would be enough time for that later. They looked at the picture together and Jack couldn't help but notice once more how incredibly beautiful Sam was. Even more so when she smiled.

He took her hand and pulled her with him. Within the next three hours they watched the bears, the elephants, the giraffes, the hippos and the tigers. They fooled around, stealing loving glances from one another and Jack managed to impress Sam with his detailed knowledge of each animal. Without reading the info signs he knew origin, food, natural enemies and even the Latin names. Sam realized once more, that he was a lot smarter than he let others believe.

Since the table at Mr. Wong's was booked for 5pm and it was only 3, Jack decided that they should have a snack.

He pulled Sam into a small passage with a little table, two benches on each side and a beautiful view over a little artificial waterfall. The sight was breathtaking and Sam wondered how she could have missed this spot in the past.

"Wow, that's amazing, Sir" she smiled, making Jack wish that she would lose the formal adress already.

"It was Charlies' favorite spot" Jack answered, without the sadness in his words, there usually was, when he talked about his son.

They sat down on the benches opposite each other and Jack took some fruit, little chocolate cakes and blue jell-o out of his backpack.

"Lunch" he stated and Sam smiled at him.

"Thank you, Sir"

"It's Jack" he mumbled while chewing on a grape.

Sam didn't react and he wasn't sure if she hadn't heard him or had simply chosen to ignore his offer.

They ate in silence, but once they were finished, Jack took Sam's hand and looked into her beautiful blue eyes.

"I was really afraid to come back here, because all of these memories, but with you by my side it is just great" he confessed.

Sam felt her heart jump at his words and the greater meaning behind them. Jack did rarely talk about his feelings, but she loved it when he did. It showed her what a gentle and rather soft man hid behind the hard shell of a soldier. "And I'm glad to be here with you, Sir."

He gave her hand a little squeeze and started talking: "Charlie was a great little guy. He was so smart and really interested in sciences. He wanted to understand the world and loved to build things or do experiments. He would even write a protocol about it. When we came here together, he wanted to learn everything about the animals and so we looked it up together at home and I tested his knowledge once we came back. He remembered every single detail and never got anything wrong. I'm sure you would have loved him."

Sam couldn't help the tears building up in her eyes. She brushed her thumb over his hand and just nodded, because she didn't trust her voice. He had never been so open about his son and it touched her deeply, that she was the one that he would confide in.

When Jack realized, what his words had done to her, he walked around the table to her side and pulled her up from the bench into his embrace: "C'mere."

"I couldn't live without you, Sam" he murmered into her hair.

His gentle words send her over the edge and Sam began crying silently into Jack's jacket. After a few moments she sobbed "We...cannot...be...together."

Jack stroke her hair and simply replied: "Actually we can, if that is what you really want."

Sam broke the contact and stared at him in disbelief. "But, how?"

"Just trust me, I'll explain everything tonight" he said, leaning forward to kiss her forehead. Then he rested his forehead on hers.

"And now it is time for our second stop. Maybe you want stop at your place and change first."

Sam didn't know if the day could get any better. It had already been the greatest birthday of her life so far.


	5. The Dinner

Another Sunday, another chapter as promised! I'm glad that you like the story so far! Thanks for coming back.

Thank you for every review, follow or fav; it's highly appreciated! Mauryn, you are the best! ;)

So, this one is taking place at the Chinese restaurant...have fun and r&amp;r! xoxo

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**Chapter 5 - The Dinner**

They stopped by at Sam's place and Jack revealed to her that they would have dinner next, but that the place was not too fancy.

Sam decided on a blue top and a white blouse with dark blue jeans, a brown belt and brown boots that made her long legs appear to be even longer.

She definitely looked gorgeous and Jack, who had also changed into a dark green plaid-shirt, had to suppress the urge to kiss her right there in her living room.

Instead he simply stated: "Wow!" and went for a short gentle brush over her arm.

"Back at ya!" Sam said, and Jack was surprised by her sudden confidence.

They smiled at each other and went for the car to head for the restaurant.

~~~~~~~~~~  
Once they arrived, Sam was surprised by Jack's choice of location.

"How did you know?" she asked and got a mega-watt O'Neill smile as a response.

"I overheard Doc Fraiser and you talking about it once or twice" he admitted.

"You eavesdropped our girl talk?" Sam asked, trying to sound shocked. She was curious what else he might have heard, but since she and Janet didn't talk about stuff that could mean trouble within the SGC, she was positive that Jack hadn't heard something he shouldn't have.

Jack simply shrugged and said: "You could have closed the door, ya know?" She smiled and let it drop.

They entered the restaurant and took their reserved table. There were two large red candles on it and when the waiter came to take their orders, he lit them up causing Sam and Jack's eyes to sparkle in the semi-darkness of the restaurant.

They ordered their drinks and then went through the menu. Sam already knew what she would have but she wanted to take the moment to enjoy the silence for a little while.

She couldn't believe this was happening. She really was about to have a romantic candlelight dinner with her CO. Her very handsome and funny and sweet and...she stopped herself trying to focus on what was happening. Trying to enjoy the evening to be able to recall every moment later in case it would turn out to be the only day they really had together like this.

Jack decided on the duck with rice, and Sam chose her favorite dish -fried rice noodles with shrimps, soy sauce and vegetables.

As they waited for their meals, the air between them became almost electric. They looked at each other silently, both of their emotions for the other evident in their eyes.

Jack laid his hand on top of Sam's and she jumped slightly at the sudden contact.

"We should have done this a long time ago" he said, his voice hoarse with emotion.

"I mean, we have a dangerous job and both came close to death so many times. My worst nightmare always has been losing you or dying myself without having told you how I really feel" than he added so softly that Sam could barely hear him "without having acted on it because of some goddamn regulations."

Her eyes started to glisten. This was by far the most romantic thing, a man had ever said to her and coming from Jack, who never talked about feelings, it was even more admirable.

"I know" Sam simply declared, not trusting her voice.

Jack swallowed and tightened the grip on her hand. He wanted to say so much more but he couldn't seem to find the right words. He mentally kicked himself and hoped that Sam would understand.

The waiter came with their food and yanked both of them out of their thoughts. When Jack saw that they both got chopsticks instead of fork and knife, he swallowed. This was going to be awkward.

He tried to pick up some rice grains with the sticks, but they all fell back into the bowl before he could even bring them near his mouth. Sam watched him with growing amusement.

"Oh, for crying out loud, that can't be that difficult!" he swore so loudly that the other guests at the restaurant stared at him.

"Let me show you, Sir" Sam said calmly, still smiling at Jack's behaviour. With that she took his hand and put the chopsticks between his fingers, so that he held them right. Then she showed him how to pick up the food and hold it between the sticks.

When he managed to do it right, immediately after she had shown him, Sam wasn't so sure anymore if Jack really hadn't known how to use them before or if he just enjoyed to play stupid. Either way she found it really entertaining and started to feel a slight tingle in her stomach.

After that, they ate in silence and simply enjoyed each other's company until Jack stated: "Yours looks delicious! How is it?"

"Wanna try?" Sam asked, picked some of her food up and held her chopsticks in front of his mouth.  
It took Jack a moment to react.  
Sam Carter was feeding him, how damn romantic was that?

He smiled at her and tried her food, nodding with satisfaction. Then he did the same with his food and when Sam let out a small moan of pleasure when she tasted it, Jack had to put up all his military training to stay calm and hold back.

"Selfie time" he said to break the spell a little, because he really wanted to go through with his plan for the day, not take Sam home just yet to do some highly inappropriate things with her.

Jack took the camera out of his pocket. They decided on taking a picture of feeding each other which turned out to be far more complicated than they had thought and there was a lot of laughing and giggling on both sides. When they finally had a picture they were both satisfied with, they went back to eat in silence.

Jack tried to focus on his own meal and when they were finished, he asked: "Dessert?"

Sam shook her head: "No, thank you, Sir, I'm full."

Jack wasn't able to eat anymore, too, so he paid, with a slight protest from Sam who was of the opinion that he already had done enough by organizing all this, but Jack had insisted.

They went outside where it was already dark by then and the cold freezing air let Sam shiver. Jack put an arm around her and let her to his car.

He stopped next to it and gathered all his courage for what he was about to do. He stood before Sam, looking into her eyes and cupped her cheeks with both of his hands. She jumped slightly because they were starting to get cold but then she stopped and they simply looked at each other in complete awe.

Jack leaned forward, closed his eyes, his heartbeat drumming in his ears. This was it. He was about to kiss her...again, but this time she would be able to remember it too.  
Before his lips touched hers they were interrupted by a loud bang.

Jack reluctantly broke the contact when a group of teenagers ran past them at the parking lot. They had a bunch of firecrackers with them throwing them away while hooting loudly. The approaching New Year manifested in front of them.

"D'oh!" Jack said, anger and disappointment evident in his voice. Sam looked down at her feet, her own frustration obvious.

Trying to lift the mood Jack barked in his best commanding voice: "We're not done here, Major Carter!" and winked at her. That brought a small smile to Sam's lips, but the magic moment was gone. Literally end up in smoke and fire.


	6. The Christmas Market

Time flies! It's Sunday again (at least in my part of the world) and here is another chapter for you!

Thank you for all the reviews (I'll reply to them soon!), faves and follows. I'm glad that you like the story!

I would love to know what you think of the following chapter!

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**Chapter 6 - The Christmas Market**

Jack and Sam drove back into the center of the city where the Christmas lights still illuminated the streets. The sight was breathtaking, but Jack tried to focus on driving, while Sam only had eyes for her CO.

The later the evening got, the more Sam got the feeling that they were going to end up together. It made her feel dizzy and excited, but she had to admit that she was also looked at Jack closely and saw that he was deep within his thoughts again. She swallowed, a huge lump in her throat, but she didn't say anything. If he wanted to talk, even more than he already had, Sam was sure he would come forward.

In the years after Charlie's death Jack had stopped to care about Christmas at all. It only reminded him of the good times that were gone and buried with his son. But with Sam by his side, Jack could imagine starting to love Christmas again. She just made life worth living, and he felt his hopes of a shared future with her go up.

First they walked across the streets side by side, a small but secure space between them. Neither one of them knowing what to say or do next. After a while Jack pulled himself together, took her gloved hand in his and they continued walking in silence.

There was a little Ferris wheel in the middle of the market that nobody seemed to have interest in riding.  
It was not much higher than 10 meters but it was kind of nostalgic and Jack, the impressions of the whole day in his head and heart, felt getting soft around Sam. He found it quite romantic and so he stopped and stood before her.

"How 'bout a little round trip on the Ferris wheel?"

"Actually, Sir, it's not exactly round" Sam started, trying to tease him and obviously succeeded because Jack barked: "Oh for crying out loud, Carter!"

Sam smirked at him and he took her hand and pulled her over to the entrance.

They sat down in one of the small pods, keeping a little space between each other and the wheel began to turn.

After a while Sam started to shiver because the freezing winter air had gotten really cold by then. She moved closer to Jack, so that their thighs and shoulders were touching. When he saw her shivering again, Jack put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close.

"C'mere" he murmured into her hair. She rested her head on his shoulder and they both enjoyed their closeness.

When the wheel had finished its first round, none of them dared to move and so they went for another one. They sat there, Sam pulled tight into Jack's side.

"Selfie time?" Jack whispered. He felt Sam nod against his shoulder and pulled the camera out with his free hand. They didn't move, he just took a picture of them cuddled up in the Ferris wheel pod.

When the second round was finished they broke their contact reluctantly and left the wheel.

When they came across a candle stand, Sam stopped and searched for some candles she liked.  
Jack rose an eyebrow and asked: "What are those for?"  
Sam smiled at him in reply: "I love spending New Year's Eve without electricity. I started this a couple of years ago and it has become a tradition. You should try, Sir, it is kind of relaxing."

"But you're completely into this electricity kind of stuff, Carter."

"I'm a theoretical astrophysicist and fire is one of the basic elements. Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products, it...".

"Ah, stop it" Jack exclaimed, putting his hands over his ears. Sam smiled at his typical reaction to her scientific explanation.

"The point is, I'm fascinated by the element, Sir. I like light and heat."

"Well, you're definitely hot" Jack realized that he had actually said this out loud, when he saw Sam blushing deeply.

He was very interested in the candles all of a sudden, trying to think of a way to return to a safer ground. Since he couldn't come up with anything helpful, he just let Sam buy the candles and then put a hand on the small of her back, leading her further across the market. Even through his gloves and her coat he could now feel another kind of heat radiating through him.

When they came across the ice skating rink, Jack glanced at Sam and she nodded with a wide smile on her face. "I'd love to. But what about your knees?" she asked, her voice filled with true concern.

"Ah, Carter, I'm not that invalid. I'll survive and I really need something cool right now" he grunted, trying to sound serious. Sam giggled at this ambiguity and Jack raised his eyebrow in a Teal'c manner.

They rented some ice skates and entered the ice rink.

Jack, who hadn't been ice skating for years, was very unsure on his feet and moved forward in tiny motions. Sam on the other hand made a pretty good ice Princess and moved around the ice as if she had done it forever.

Jack tried to move forward, holding onto the ring fence as if his life was depending on it. Sam saw him there and approached him for help but just before she reached him, a kid slammed into her back. Sam stumbled forward and couldn't stop.  
She fell right into Jack who had seen her coming and welcomed her in a warm embrace.

"Hey, easy there, Carter, not that I don't love your wild side, but you really gotta warn an old man before jumping him", he joked.

Only then did he realize that he had just used the word love regarding Sam Carter. He swallowed and glanced down at her, her face only inches away from his.

When Sam shifted in Jack's embrace to bring her mouth closer to his, he lost his balance and his skates slid forward. Before he could hold onto the fence, Jack landed on his back, pulling Sam down with him. She landed on top of him. He let out a loud huff and grunted.

"Are you alright, Sir?" Sam asked concerned.

"Hmpf...leg kinda hurts...but I'll live."

Only then did they realize that a crowd of people stared down at them and the first ones started cheering and hooting.

"Woah, you two, get a room!" "Kiss her already!" "Man, what are you waiting for, she's hot!"

The last comment made Jack grin up at Sam: "Told ya so!"

She rolled her eyes at him. Frustrated that another moment, that could have let to something more, was ruined, Sam bobbed up and helped Jack get up too.

She noticed that he tried not to put any weight on his left leg and started to worry about his bad knee again.

When they had changed into their shoes and left the ice-rink, Jack was limping heavily and made Sam state, "Sir, you can barely walk."

He wanted to protest, but when a sharp pain raced through his knee, he nodded and looked sadly at Sam. "I...I don't want the day to end yet."

He looked like a beaten puppy and Sam's heart began to ache.

"Me neither" she whispered.

"Come home with me" Jack simply said, not daring to look into her eyes.

"Okay," was all she managed to answer as she helped him walking to his car and drove them both home.  
His home...

_To be continued..._

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The next chapter will be the last one of this story. Please come back for the grand finale next Sunday! ;)


	7. Stargazing

So here it is, the last chapter of this story!

I hope that you enjoyed it. If you did, please let me know!

Thanks to all my readers and of course to Mauryn for beta reading!

XoXo

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**Chapter 7 - Stargazing**

When Sam helped Jack out of his car after they had arrived at his house, he winced slightly, trying to hide the sound behind a cough.

Sam realized it anyway, knowing her CO pretty well after six years of working together side by side almost every day.

"Shall I take you to the hospital, Sir?"

"No way, Carter! They've got needles there, way too many of them! Over my dead body!" he barked in his best commanding voice.

Sam chuckled at her CO's fear of such a harmless thing as needles. Sometimes he reminded her of a child. This innocent and sometimes cute behavior was one of the things she loved about him.

_"Yeah, I'm definitely in love with him"_ she thought, admitting it to herself for the first time in forever. This day had only deepened her feelings for him. He was such a big-hearted and caring man who had suffered so much pain in his life that it was amazing how he was still be able to give so much to make her feel loved.

They went inside, and Jack let himself drop onto his couch with a loud groan, he didn't even try to hide.

"Ah, crap" he cursed and Sam went into the kitchen to get some ice for cooling his knee.

"Well, if you are that stubborn, my simple medical skills will have to do" Sam told him when she got back and pressed the ice onto his injury.

"Well, if that makes ya stay with me, I can live with that" he replied teasingly, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

Sam looked into his eyes and took a moment to let the sight of the man before her sink in. He was so handsome that even a trained soldier like her had difficulties to hold back from jumping him right there.

"Jack..." she said softly, indicating by the use of his first name that things were getting serious, "you wanted to explain to me, why we could be together if we wanted to."

With that she sat down beside him and this time she did sit close to him from the start.

Sam turned to face him and waited for Jack to answer.

After a while he said softly: "Sam, you know you mean hell of a lot to me, right?"

She just nodded in reply because she wanted him to continue.

"I wanted to know if we could really get a shot at...this. That's why I talked to Hammond and suggested to get transferred to another SG team to be out of your direct chain of command."

Sam swallowed, her stomach turning at the thought of losing Jack on SG-1. They would not be the same without him and who should take the lead?

Jack went on, realizing her shocked expression: "Good ol' George declined my request and assured me that we could see each other outside of work without consequences if we manage to remain professional while on duty."

Sam's eyes grew bigger and she stared at Jack with her mouth open.

"He did?" she asked, not quite believing what she had just learned.

Jack smiled at her: "Indeed. And the President and the NID ain't gonna be no problem either. I guess they realized that they owe us for saving their asses so many times."

Jack's smile grew wider but dropped immediately when he saw that Sam looked much too serious for such great news.

"Oh" he stated, "you...you don't wanna try?! I…I thought..."

Sam interrupted him by putting her index finger at his mouth and saying: "Of course, I wanna try, Jack! There is nothing in this whole wide universe I would like to do more!"

"Why are you looking so damn serious then?" he grumbled, trying to sound annoyed.

"Because I really wish, that we would have acted on it sooner instead of wasting all this time" she explained, looking really heavy-hearted.

"Oh well, let's not dwell" Jack rhymed and pulled her into his arms.

Her concerns and dwelling were gone and all Sam could think of that this was it. They were so close to becoming a couple. Her heart beat almost out of her chest and she could feel his beat at a similar rate.

She drew back a little to look into his chocolate brown eyes and it took him only a blink of an eye to close the gap between them.

When their lips finally met it was so much more intense than either of them had ever imagined. It was long and soft, without demand or rush, only sweet and full of emotions. When the need for air became too important, Sam leaned back for a moment, just to look at her new lover.

She took his head in both hands and caressed his cheeks with her thumbs.

His eyes were so tender and full of love that Sam couldn't hold back the words anymore: "I love you, Jack...I love you so much!"

With that she leaned back into him and kissed him again. Deeper this time.

"Love ya, too! Am I allowed to call you hot now?" he teased against her lips, earning a warning glare from Sam.

"I don't think we should go there just yet. You're hurt and we don't have to rush things" she said, her voice nothing more than a whisper.

Sam always had to be the reasonable one, Jack thought, but he knew she was right.

"Okay, how 'bout some awesome stargazing on my roof instead?" Jack suggested as if he only had come up with the idea recently.

He then added, his voice sounding more pleading than he had intended: "Please don't leave. I want you to stay the night, Sam. We don't have to do anything other than sleep…and cuddle maybe."

Sam realized that he was excited and nervous, which mirrored her own feelings exactly.

"If you lend me something to sleep in, I'll stay" she told him, putting her arms around his neck.

"I wouldn't mind, if you got nothing to wear and stayed anyway" Jack said with a smirk.

Sam slapped him slightly on his shoulder and grinned back at him.

"Let's go to the roof" she suggested before the conversation got any more intense.

It had taken them a lot longer than usual to get to the roof, given Jack's injury.  
He sat down on the recliner on the roof and motioned Sam to sit down on the pillows at his feet.

She realized that he must have planned this all along but she wasn't in the mood to argue.  
The day had been perfect so far and the evening turned out to be even better.  
Sam couldn't remember that she had felt any happier before.

She sat down on the pillows, so that she was sitting between his legs, her back turned to him.  
Jack started massaging her shoulders tenderly and Sam let out a small moan. She hadn't realized how tense she was.

When she looked up to the sky, she noticed how beautiful and clear the night was. The sky and stars never ceased to amaze her, which was one thing she and Jack had definitely in common.

"It's beautiful" Sam said, breaking the silence.

"So are you" Jack whispered into her ear, making her shiver from the light contact.

Sam leaned her head back to look into his eyes. He bent forward and kissed her deeply.

"This...YOU are the greatest birthday gift of my life" she told Jack, turning around to face him, "thank you for taking the first step! I love you!"

He smiled his unique O'Neill smile and bent down for another kiss.

"I love you, too! Always," he said softly and this simple answer was all she had ever dreamed of because it held the promise of so much more to come.

**The End**


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